Several teammates quietly patted him on the back. The gravity of the moment was powerful, reflecting the concern about Betancourt’s right elbow injury. An initial evaluation by the Rockies trainer Keith Dugger suggested that there is a possible ulnar collateral ligament tear which would end the highly-respected veteran’s season and possibly his career. Betancourt, 38, will undergo an MRI on Monday.

“It’s not good. It’s very sore right now. I have gone through a lot of pain throughout my whole career, but this is completely different,” Betancourt told The Denver Post. “I could not throw another pitch.”

Betancourt revealed that his elbow was bothering him slightly on Wednesday night. He tried to convince himself that it was just normal tightness given his recent long stretch of inactivity following his appendectomy.

“Sometimes you have soreness after you pitch. Last night was different while I was pitching. It was weird. And it was a little sore after the game,” Betancourt said. “Today, I was sore, but you know, I was warming up and I thought I could get get through it.”

Twenty-four hours after blowing his second save of the season, Betancourt figured the adrenalin of the game would take over. That he could find a way to secure three outs. It wasn’t going to be easy. The elbow was getting worse as he pitched. He retired the first two hitters, then allowed a double to Phillies shortstop Jimmy Rollins. He reached two strikes on Michael Young, who walked off Betancourt and the Rockies on Wednesday.

“I figured I had one more pitch in me. Either get him out and game over, or come out of the game,” Betancourt said. “I thought I could do it. If I throw one more pitch after that it was going to be really bad.”

Young hit a slow roller — “A swinging bunt” Weiss called it — that Nolan Arenado couldn’t barehand cleanly. Young reached safely and Betancourt exited without throwing another pitch. Dominic Brown singled off Jeff Francis to send the Phillies to their second-straight walkoff victory. Betancourt has not dealt with an elbow injury since he fractured it in 2001.

“This is different. It’s not in the same spot. It’s here,” said Betancourt, pointing to the ligament. “It’s tough.”

If the MRI shows an ulnar collateral ligament tear the operation, known as Tommy John surgery, requires a nine-to-12 month rehabilitation. Pitchers typically recover, but Betancourt’s age presents a steep challenge. He has a $4.25-million mutual option for next season. The Rockies were prepared to exercise it, but that would obviously change if he’s lost for a year. The right-hander was placed on waivers this week to gauge trade interest. But his injury eliminates any possibility of him being dealt.

Sky Sox right-hander Rob Scahill is likely to replace Betancourt in the bullpen on Friday in Miami, with Rex Brothers, who was unavailable on Thursday after pitching three consecutive nights, moving back to the closer’s role.

“It’s tough news,” Weiss said. “He’s a warrior.”

Footnotes
–Jhoulys Chacin arrived in Miami following a trip to Venezuela to comfort his family after the death of his grandmother.
–Wilin Rosario has five home runs during his 13-game hitting streak. Dating to June 15, he’s hitting .333 (61-for-183) with 10 homers and 38 RBIs.